Star Citizen Patch 3.1.0

We are excited to announce the release of Alpha Patch 3.1.0 to all Star Citizen backers. This update marks the first of four quarterly patches planned to be released this year, and the inaugural success of the new delivery schedule. At the start of the year, our internal teams underwent a restructuring to allow for easier coordination and focus on a particular aspect or feature. Thanks to this new approach, the development team was able to more efficiently tackle the goals outlined for 3.1 on our Production Roadmap and introduce several new gameplay features and optimizations to Star Citizen.

Starting with Alpha 3.1, players will find new ways to interact with each other. The Character Customizer is now accessible from the main menu and allows players to distinguish their avatars with various combinations of hair style, skin tone, and more. This is just our first iteration of the system and we have a lot more planned for future releases, but even at this early stage it is exciting to see all the new and varied faces exploring the halls of Port Olisar and Grim HEX. Starting with this patch, players will also be able create Service Beacons from the Contract Manager in their mobiGlas and hire other players to provide Combat Assistance or Personal Transport. This new system will be a huge boon to players who may need a ride back to a station from the wilds of Crusader’s three explorable moons, and represents a whole new revenue stream for players willing to lend their combat skills to aid others. This feature is also an initial iteration that will be improved and expanded in future releases, but it’s an important step in further developing the kind of emergent gameplay that is intended for the Persistent Universe.

Not only that, the bevy of new flyable ships and open-canopy vehicles introduced in this patch will provide players exciting options for crewing up and exploring the Stanton system together. Measuring over 150 meters, the Reclaimer is the largest ship currently in-game. This heavy industrial salvage ship from Aegis Dynamics is so massive that the environment art team has expanded Port Olisar’s landing pads to accommodate it. Explorers will want to get behind the sticks of the Anvil Terrapin. The ship’s robust shield system and distinct layered armor make it ideal for exploring untamed space. Racers looking to experience breakneck speed can climb into the MISC Razor. The ship will be a perennial Murray Cup contender thanks to advanced Xi’an thruster technology and a streamlined design.

Plus, exploring Crusader’s moons just got more exciting with the addition of the Aopoa Nox Kue and Tumbril Cyclone. The Nox Kue is a special variant of the renowned Xi’an open-canopy racer that Aopoa redesigned specifically for Humans. The Tumbril Cyclone is a rugged off-road ground vehicle ready to tackle any terrain. Both vehicles are perfect for traversing Cellin, Daymar, and Yela, which also received upgrades in Alpha 3.1, thanks to planetary technology improvements that updated surface textures and topography for more visually dynamic and detailed landscapes.

Additionally, the development team polished many of the exciting features that launched with the 3.0 patch in December. Updates to the IFCS (flight control), AI, the Personal Manager tool on each player’s mobiGlas, ship weapons, ship damage physics and overall performance optimization, all are working in concert to improve the overall Star Citizen gameplay experience.

NEW FEATURES

Character Customizer

• With this feature, players can adjust aspects of their character’s physical appearance, such as face shape, eye color, hair style, and skin tone.

Logout Improvements

• Players can now safely logout from major stations like Levski, Grim HEX, and Port Olisar. This will persist between sessions for when players log back into the game.

Pirate Hunter

• Player will now earn virtue reputation for killing NPC pirates.

Interdiction and Quantum Jamming

• AI pilots can now carry Quantum Jammers aboard their ships. These devices produce a field which stop Quantum Drives from being able to function. Players who are interdicted will now first have to destroy ships carrying Jammers before they can Quantum Travel away to safety.

Service Beacons

• Service Beacons have been introduced to the PU economy. Using the mobiGlas, players can create and customize “Personal Transport” or “Combat Assistance” contracts that will be made available to other players to complete for the agreed upon payment. After the contract ends, players will be able to review each others performance with a positive or negative rating.

Combat Markers

• The old Combat Markers were replaced with new 3D versions that include target brackets, hit indication, and missile locks.

Visor Screen

• The visor screen has had additional hit effects for shields and hull areas added to the displays for your ship and targeted ships.
• A new MFD screen has been added allowing players to customize the view angles of the target/self visor screens.

New Ships and Vehicles

• Tumbril Cyclone
• Aegis Reclaimer
• Anvil Terrapin
• MISC Razor
• Nox Kue

New Ship Weapons

• PRAR Distortion Scatterguns
  • Salvation (size 4)
  • Absolution (size 5)
  • Condemnation (size 6)
• APAR Ballistic Scattergun
  • Havoc (size 1)
  • Hellion (size 2)
  • Predator (size 3)
• KBAR 10-Series Greatsword Ballistic Cannon (size 2)
• AMRS Omnisky IX Laser Cannon
• GATS Yellowjacket Ballistic Gatling (size 1)
• CF-557 Galdereen Repeater (size 5)

Star Marine

• KSAR Custodian Energy SMG
• GMNI R97 Ballistic Shotgun

You can find the full patch notes for Alpha 3.1.0 here.